Shannon Lane’s Temperance
Description
Olivia lost her father at the age of five. Charles may be alive, but how much is an absent alcoholic father really involved in their child’s life?
Olivia has long since written her father out of her life. When her brother unexpectedly calls to tell her that their father, Charles, is out of rehab again and will be living with him, she doubts that their father has finally changed. And when Charles shows up on her doorstep that very night, Olivia just wants him gone.
Now, with her own young child to protect, Olivia struggles over whether or not she can trust that her father has changed; and if he has, whether or not she can put aside her assumptions and hurts to even give him a chance to prove it.
Disclosure
I received this Advance Reader Copy (ARC) for free from Shannon Lane with the agreement that, in exchange, I would publish a review. This does not affect my opinion of the book, or the content of my review; the following review is unbiased, and all opinions are my own.
Note: this review is based on my reading of an ARC, therefore some content of the book may change between my reading it and its publication. Any quotes taken from an ARC may not match publication.
Review – Spoiler Free
When Shannon Lane called for ARC readers for her newest work, Temperance, I jumped on the opportunity. The contemporary genre and First Person point of view took me a bit to get into reading it, but it was worth it! This is a beautiful story of love and loss, happiness and heartache, and friendship and family.
I loved the subtle aspects of the drama in Temperance, it has a slow pace to it that helps the reader step into Olivia’s comfortably consistent life. We get to see her father try to prove his love to her, and we hope along with her that he is genuine, all while she reminds us and herself of the many hurts he has caused her. We follow along as adults learn how to live life again, and it feels like they’re navigating a second coming of age journey. And we are reminded of just how much others can affect us – for better or for worse.
I also loved the ending. Any story about a recovering alcoholic is going to be emotionally rough, and Temperance is no exception, but Lane ties it all beautifully together.
While I enjoyed many of the characters, I did struggle with consistently appreciating Olivia’s young daughter, Maisie. The story told in Temperance is a heavy one, touching on hard emotions related to absent parents, broken marriages, addiction, and substance abuse. Maisie is a bright, bubbling light in it, one of the few things that help buoy up Olivia through it all. While her character and her role were definitely needed, I found myself feeling she was a little too idyllically happy. And adults repeatedly sheltered her from things that, while unpleasant, could have been explained to her adequately.
Overall, I enjoyed Shannon Lane’s Temperance. It is an emotional, heavy story about the power of our choices. I would definitely recommend this to those who enjoy contemporary fiction, and family dramas.
Quote
Time doesn’t hold the sole responsibility of mending all heartache; we share in that burden. We have the ultimate power to either hang onto the past, or move forward toward a future that is divine and worthwhile. No measure of time grasps the key to happiness.
Temperance, Shannon Lane
Ratings
- Quality of Writing – 3
- Plot – 4
- World Building – 4
- Characters – 4
- Ease of Reading – 5
- Overall Enjoyment – 3
- Final Rating – 4 (Actual: 3.8) – Really Liked It
Want to learn more about the numbers I use for rating, and the qualities I’m thinking about when writing a book review? Check out my post How I Rate and Review.